Palmer Times Two
by Abberz the Awesome
Summary: When tragedy strikes the Palmer family, Jimmy must step up and help. But who will help him? Ziva/Jimmy, case fic. OC death.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: My first multi-chap attempt! I hope it doesn't suck too badly. Anyway, I am writing this because Palmer is way too underappreciated. Rumor mill has it that he gets a spot in the Season 8 credits (FINALLY! After 6 seasons he deserves some respect!)Have fun reading this!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own them. And my piggy bank doesn't have enough money to buy them.**

_Palmer Times Two_

"Mommy! Come on!" screamed Melissa O'Brien. "The stars are out!"

Melissa's mother, Danielle O'Brien and her husband, Lt. Col. Thomas O'Brien, ran after her followed close behind by their mother, Grace Palmer. They had gone to Rock Creek Park for an evening of stargazing, and Melissa was very eager to get started.

"Coming sweetie," said Thomas. He had a telescope slung over his shoulder, but was easily catching up to his daughter.

"Heavens, Dani!" yelled Grace. "That child of yours has more energy that Jimmy did when he was younger!"

"Grammy!" yelled Melissa. "Why didn't Uncle Jimmy come?"

"He has a big college test tomorrow. Something about the skeletal system and different types of fractures?"

"Oh yeah! He was talking about that last week!"

Suddenly she stopped walking and promptly dropped the blanket on the ground and began to spread it.

"Daddy? Can you set up the telescope while I go to the bathroom? I really gotta go!" She pointed to the row of porta potties at the other end of the field.

"Sure, honey!"

Melissa bounded over as fast as her eight year old legs could take her, and opened the door. "Phew! This stinks. Suddenly, she heard gunshot noises. She bounded out and ran over to her mommy, daddy, and grandma. But, she was too late.

"Mommy, Daddy, Grammy! What happened! Why are you bleeding? Why won't you answer me?" She yelled frantically, slapping their cold faces and waiting for a response. Then, she remembered what her Uncle Jimmy told her to do. She reached into her mom's pocketbook and pulled out her cell phone. Shakily, she dialed.

"_Hello. 911, what is your emergency?"_ the operator answered.

"Hi. My mommy, daddy and Grammy have been shot. I think they're dead."

* * *

It was a bustling morning in the bullpen. The pumpkin orange walls brightly shone, and our favorite NCIS agents were in a particularly good mood.

"Good morning, Zee-vah!"

"Good morning, Tony. Good night?"

"Oh yes. Not much sleeping though. Good morning, McElfLord!"

"Good morning, Tony."

"Oooh. I had a good night…"

Their conversation was interrupted by their boss, the conundrum of a person, Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

"Gear up! Triple homicide, Rock Creek Park. Lieutenant and his family. Gear up. Tony, gas up the van, Ziva, McGee, get Ducky and Palmer."

McGee looked up. "Triple homicide?"

His boss responded. "Yes, triple homicide. Get moving!"

And so, like any other case, backpacks were grabbed, guns holstered and badges pocketed. A normal day, with a normal case.

* * *

Death was a part of their job. Day in and day out, there was death at NCIS. But three deaths at one scene was unusual and unnerving at best.

"McGee, bag and tag, DiNozzo, sketch, David, pictures. I'll talk to the witness." And so they went about their jobs.

A few minutes later, the other truck pulled up with our autopsy men.

"Mr. Palmer, must you always get us lost?"

"But, Doctor, you had the map!"

"Do not blame the old man. You should know your left and right by your age."

Jimmy sighed. "Yes Doctor."

"Now, the bodies." Ducky led Jimmy over to the field, when suddenly Jimmy gasped and ran back to the van, his hand over his mouth. He hurled into a bag, coughing and sputtering. His body shook, and his face showed raw pain.

"Everything all right, Mr. Palmer? Do I need to take you to a hospital?"

"No, Doctor, I'm fine." Jimmy said getting up and heading to the crime scene. "But, they are not."

"Well of course. They're dead. Are you sure you're all right Jimmy?" The old Doctor looked at his young friend, concern etched in his voice.

"Oh, I'm fine." He pointed to the s truck. "Should I get the gurneys?"

He headed over, not waiting for a response. Then, he wheeled the bed over to joining Ducky. McGee then came over with his phone, reading off a page.

"The victims were identified as—"

Palmer cut him off. "Melissa and Thomas O'Brien and Grace Palmer."

"Oh dear, Mr. Palmer. Do you know them?"

"Of course I do. They're my brother-in-law, my sister, and my mother."

Ducky looked at him with concern. "Oh dear Jimmy. Would you like to go home?"

"Not really, Doctor. I just want to get the bastard who did this."

He shakily raised a fist in the air and punched the gurney.

* * *

McGee walked away for a second to talk to Gibbs, and then came back to the ME and his assistant. "Palmer, the witness identified herself as Melissa O'Brien."

Palmer's eyes widened. "Oh, god. Mels…" His voice trailed off sadly. "She saw this?" He gestured to the bodies of his family around him.

"Not directly. She was in the bathroom." McGee tried to smile, but it just turned into a grimace.

"Oh God, Mels… Can I see her?" Palmer asked.

McGee nodded and led him across the field to Gibbs and Melissa.

"Uncle Jimmy!" Melissa yelled running up to him, giving him a hug. "Why are you here?"

"Well, I work for NCIS, but mostly because I needed to see your beautiful face!" Jimmy lifted her into a piggyback and spun in a circle before putting her down.

"Oh Uncle Jimmy. You can always make a girl feel better." She smiled before frowning. "Are you going to find out what happened to mommy, daddy, and Grammy?" She looked at Jimmy expectantly.

"Me and my friends will make sure justice is served. But for now, you get to stay at NCIS with me" Jimmy looked at Gibbs, who nodded in agreement. "So let's answer a few more questions before you can get back."

Melissa nodded gravely and turned back to Gibbs. "Fire away!"

**A/N: Soooooooooo? How was it? Reviews would be good. Just hit the yellow and blue button. You know you want to. Also, feel free to read and review my other stories. Bye!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: The response to the first chapter was, to say the least, underwhelming. Sooooooo, please review!**

**Disclaimer: I'm broke, so I do not own it.**

"_Me and my friends will make sure justice is served. But for now, you get to stay at NCIS with me" Jimmy looked at Gibbs, who nodded in agreement. "So let's answer a few more questions before you can get back."_

_Melissa nodded gravely and turned back to Gibbs. "Fire away!"_

"What happened? Just start from the beginning, and work your way through the night." Gibbs asked.

Mels frowned, furrowing her brow in concentration in a very Jimmy-like fashion, which caused Gibbs to exercise his famous half-smirk. That earned a glare from Palmer, which was unheard of. Gibbs decided he would ask Ducky about that.

Mels then began to speak:

"We were going to go stargazing in the Park, just Uncle Jimmy and I, when Uncle Jimmy had to cancel. He had his skeletal systems and fractures exam. So instead, Mommy and Daddy and Grammy came with me. Daddy went to put the telescope up, and I went to pee. I heard 3 gunshots and ran out to find them on the ground. I did exactly what Uncle Jimmy told me to do in case anybody got hurt. I dialed 911 and let the grown-ups handle everything else."

"And you did great Mels. Anything else Agent Gibbs?" Palmer questioned, leaning over to give Mels a hug.

"Yes, actually. You confirm three gunshots?

Mels nodded. "Three gunshots."

"And your Uncle Jimmy was the one who was supposed to take you today?"

"Yes, sir, Agent Gibbs."

"All set, little lady. You can go now." Gibbs pulled out a business card. "Now, do you want me to give this to your Uncle, or do you think you can handle it?"

Mels nodded gravely and held out her hand, accepting the card. Jimmy smiled gratefully and told Mels to go in the car while he talked to Agent Gibbs.

"Agent Gibbs, why did you ask her about me?"

"My gut. And the fact that you are an employee of a federal agency who could be a target of a terrorist organization."

"Well," Palmer said, tipping his hat in Gibbs direction and heading to his car. "Find the bastard regardless."

Palmer drove Melissa back to NCIS, parked his car, and decided to go down to Abby's lab, knowing that fun with Abby would lighten Melissa's mind. Stepping out of the elevator the familiar ding, he held Melissa's hand and walked into Abby's lab. Abby ran up and hugged him, nearly knocking him over.

"Timmy called me saying what happened. I am so sorry, Jimmy!"

Jimmy silently staggered back, abruptly ending the hug, to Abby's surprise. Abby also stepped back, examining Melissa, who had also begun her evaluation of the new adult she was meeting.

"You must be mini-Jimmy! I'm Abby Scuito, Forensic Specialist Extroadeneer!"

"And I am Melissa O'Brien, Brownie Girl Scout!" Mels responded, thinking of the only official title she had.

Jimmy interrupted quietly. "Abby, do you mind watching Melissa for a little while, maybe give her a tour of the Lab?"

Abby nodded understandingly, looking at Jimmy's already tired eyes. Jimmy then began to walk out of the room, listening to the beginning of Abby's speech over his shoulder. "Welcome the the Lab of Abby, also called Labby. This is Major Mass Spec, and this is Bert the farting hippo…"

Jimmy began t wander around NCIS, looking for a place where he could clear his head and think quietly. The bullpen, Abby's lab, and the elevator were out of the question, so he headed down to the now vacant autopsy room. He laid down on the table and propped a roll of towels under his head. He closed his eyes, and reluctantly succumbed to sleep.

The entire team went down to autopsy, leaving Mels with the director's assistant, and were surprised to see Ducky bustling around alone with Jimmy curled up asleep on a examination table.

Tony nodded to his young friend. "Duck, is he okay?"

"Oh yes, Anthony. Just a case of exhaustion. From what I can tell, due to exams, young Mr. Palmer here hasn't slept in a few days. He has spent every spare moment that he hasn't been spending here studying. Sometimes I do forget that in addition to working here he does the full course load of a medical student."

Tony glanced again at Palmer's sleeping form. "Shouldn't we move him for the bodies?"

"They can wait, Anthony."

Just then, Palmer began to stir and whimper. His cries grew louder and his friends watched helplessly. Then, surprisingly, Ziva stepped up and began to caress his shoulder and rub his head. Still, Palmer screamed on, the names of the dead ringing through the cold room: "Dani, Mommy, Dad, Tommy, Director Sheppard, Paula, Kate… MITCHIE!" He then shook himself awake, his body bolting into an upright position. He then glanced around at his surrounding and his eyes resting on Ziva's hand resting on his knee.

"What's going on? Where is Mels? WHY ARE YOU ALL WATCHING ME SLEEP?"

Ziva responded softly. "We are in autopsy, we were not watching you, and Melissa is with Director Vance's assistant."

Jimmy's head then began to focus on his dream, the horrific images of the dead still haunting him, and fear crept on his face.

Ziva tried to prod again. "What was the dream about?" Palmer just looked at his hands and shook his head. Ziva then understood. She nodded to the rest of the team and pointed to the elevator, which they all piled into, leaving the two collegues alone.

Ziva repeated her question, more softly this time. "What was your dream about?"

Jimmy quietly started to talk. "I saw them. All the people I know who have died. My family, the agents, and Michelle. All there, just watching me and reaching for me."

Ziva looked at him with concern. "Michelle was more than a coworker?"

Jimmy nodded. "We broke up after dating for a few months, but I still loved her. But before I could tell her that, Gibbs went and murdered her!" Jimmy then hopped of the table and kicked a cabinet, causing a bang to echo through the room. He sunk to the floor crying, and Ziva rushed over to hug him, and he cried for another half an hour as she held him, rocking him back and forth.

As soon as Jimmy fell asleep again, Ziva carefully removed him from her body and rushed up to the bullpen to the anxiously awaiting crowd. All at once they said the same thing. "What the hell is wrong?"\

Ziva tiredly looked up. "He is mad from all the death around him. And he is mad at Gibbs because he killed Michelle, who he was in love with."

They all looked up with surprise at what Ziva could get out of him, but before they could ask she was already at the elevator.

"I must be down there for when he wakes up again."

Tim looked at her. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because I know how it feels."

**A/N: That totally did not go where I expected it to. Oh well. Kinda OOC for Ziva, but I think she'll be like that because she is helping a friend grieve. And Palmer is being brave to Gibbs. Trying circumstances bring out different sides of us, though.**

**R/R!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I HAVE NO REVIEWS! And that makes me sad… So please review?**

**Sorry for not updating. Hehe…**

**Disclaimer: I am totally the CEO of CBS and Don P. Bellisario. NOT!**

_"Because I know how it feels."  
_Ziva turned around and let the elevator doors close behind her. She then flipped the emergency switch and began to weep, sliding down the wall with her knees up to her chest. The tears were unrestricted and free. The tears were silent.

The day was bringing back terrible memories. All the nightmares she had after coming home from Somalia, the hours lieing in bed at night, feeling alone. Hopeless. Deserted.

Nobody at NCIS really knew Palmer except for Tony and Ducky, now that she thought about it. This family he had, it wasn't a secret. Nobody cared enough to ask. And now, Palmer felt more alone then ever and needed a friend to pull him through.

And Ziva David wanted to be that friend.

She got up wiping her eyes and flipped the elevator switch.

_Ding!_ The elevator arrived in autopsy waking Jimmy. He sat up from his spot on the floor, looking around.

_Why the hell am I on the floor of autopsy? _He thought. Then the days came rushing back to him. The death, the dreams, and Ziva. The hardcore assassin showing emotion. To him. The itsy-bitsy awkward autopsy assitstant.

"Jimmy?" A hesitant voice sounded behind him. He turned to it, seeing Ziva with her hands curled up to her chest twitching sporadically. She looked… afraid? Then Jimmy saw the red in her eyes and the wet spots on her cheeks.

"Ziva, have you been crying?" he asked. Ziva looked down, shameful.

"America has softened me." She kept staring at her hands avoiding eye contact.

"Ziva?" Jimmy said softly. She looked up into his eyes. "I need you to tell me. It will make you feel a lot better."

"No."

"Yes. I told you, now you must tell me."

Ziva took a breath and began. "Today made me thik of the nightmares I had in Somalia. The aloneness. I had lost hope."

Jimmy opened his arms up and hugged her. She tightly held onto him, burying her face into his sweatshirt. It smelled feminine, like flowers?

"Jimmy, why does your sweatshirt smell like flowers?"

He smiled. "My washer broke and I had to borrow my neighbors. A 60-year-old woman and her cats."

They both laughed, then Jimmy said, "We should probably go back up to the bullpen. They'll be looking for us."

Wordlessly she turned to the elevator and he turned as well keeping his arm around her shoulder, her with her arm around his waist. They hit the elevator button and let it close. The capsule began to move and they stood in comfortable silence. The bell dinged and Jimmy gave Ziva's shoulder a tight squeeze and walked into the bullpen with her in tow.

The bullpen was silent. People were all sitting in a myriad of chairs staring at the floor. And at the sound of the bell had looked at the elevator, surprised to see it open to reveal a semi-sane autopsy gremlin and an ex-Mossad operative in a side hug gazing adoringly into each other's eyes. Gibbs knew the look on their faces. It was love.

Jimmy knew it at the exact moment he stepped into the bullpen.

Ziva knew it at the exact moment she walked into the bullpen.

He was in love.

She was in love.

They were in love.

Palmer interrupted the silence gruffly. "Where's Melissa?"

Before anyone could say anything a scream rang from the balcony. "Uncle Jimmy. There you are! I was looking all over for you but Cynthia said you were all busy, so I snuck out and her I am!"

Jimmy smiled. "Mels. I would like you to meet the rest of my team."

He walked her over to Ducky. "This is my boss, Dr. Mallard."

She smiled. "You're the one who doesn't let him call you Ducky, like everyone else!"

Ducky smiled back. "The pleasure is mine young lady." He took her hand and kissed it, causing her to giggle.

Then Palmer led her over to Tim and Tony. "This is Tim and Tony."

Melissa giggles. "The brothers: the geek and the playboy."

Everyone began to laugh. In one sentence an eight-year-old had summed them up.

Tim waved and Tony smiled. She was a cute little girl.

Then Palmer led her to Ziva. "This is Ziva."

Melissa giggled. "Crazy ninja lady."

Ziva smiled. "That I am."

"Can you teach me sick-nasty ninja moves?"

Ziva laughed. "The pleasure would be mine." She looked at Jimmy and smiled. He smiled back.

NCIS had put Melissa O'Brien in protective custody. As a witness, she would be at risk. Jimmy and Ziva watched her constantly. They played games together, and let Tim, Tony, and Gibbs worked on the case. They had a silent agreement: let Ziva and Jimmy keep Melissa safe, and they catch the bad guy.

One day later, they had a lead.

Lt. Col. Thomas O'Brien was stationed in Norfolk. They had asked his C.O. if anyone had a grudge against him. The man had pointed them to Lt. Col. James Nugent. Nugent had been a troublemaker in his childhood, picking fights and picking pockets. As an adult he was even more trouble. Espionage and terrorism. Big trouble. O'Brien had found out what Nugent was up to, and killing the witnesses was icing on the cake.

Immediately, they went to go get him. A short chase at his house and soon he was cuffed and shoved roughly into and NCIS car. They brought him in and put him in Interrogation 1. Then, they told everyone they had found him and brought him in.

They let Ziva do the interrogation.

**A/N2: Is it good. I'm thinking 2 more chapters. Are you okay with some Ziva/Jimmy? Don't worry, there'll be kiss scene soon. And it'll be great. I can feel it.**

**R/R!**


End file.
